26things November

Last month Miss U gave me a link to a web site hosted on flickr which she thought I might enjoy, given my re-enlightened interest in photography, and it turned out to be a photographic scavenger hunt... what fun!!

Each month, or bi-monthly, haven't quite worked that out yet, a list of 26 things is posted on the site. Anyone can play along as long as they sign up to the group and the idea is that you go out and photograph as many of the '26things' as you can, putting your own artistic slant and creativity into your shots. We decided to challenge each other and then blog about it at the same time.

The rules state that these photographs do not have to have been taken especially for the list, you can use old photographs you have saved on your computer, but they must be your own work, and they must not be heavily manipulated in a software package, eg Photoshop, except for a general lightening/contrast.

Seems easy I thought. Mistake number 1. It was not nearly as easy as I thought it would be, especially with the lack of time to go out and about which I am suffering from badly at the moment. However, I have a few of the 26things, allbeit, not particularly artistic, I am posting them anyway, in the hope it will spur me on to do better with the next list!!! (Note to self: must do better).

Here are the 26 things, and my meagre attempt at producing/using photographs I have taken to fill the criteria:

1. glee

This is me on a night out last Sunday. Well actually, it was a whole afternoon and an entire evening. The football team had a big cup match to play, and the club had booked a coach. 40 of us turned up to board the coach for a road trip out of town, but the football was cancelled due to the severe weather... we all decided we still wanted a jolly. What do they put in the beer nowadays?

2. village

3. reality

This is the scar from my thyroid operation back in the summer. It was an hour or so after getting back to the ward, as you see, the surgeons artistic drawing is still there. When hubby came to visit me later that day, he renamed me Frankie and threatened to get me a bolt to put through my neck!!!! Sod!

4. accident
5. anxiety
6. low
7. copy

8. kindness
This is the huge bunch of flowers that my daughter received last month from her work colleagues after coming out of hospital following an unexpected operation at short notice. They were gorgeous, but of course, I had to photograph them. So glad I took some macro shots of some of the individual flowers, our second project at college has just been handed out, and it is all macro on the topic of Flora and Fauna!! How lucky is that!

9. bad taste

10. stairwell This stairwell is half way up the south tower of Tower Bridge in London. As we climbed the steps up to the walkways high above the road level, the circular iron staircase and the studed iron support work was a great contrast to the delicate carvings which are in abundance on the outside of the bridge supports and I just had the urge to snap it

11. public transport
You have seen this picture taken from the London Eye before I know, but I love it, and it fitted right into this category, given that we are allowed to use artistic licence on the meanings. It is for the public to 'ride' on and the ride is called a 'flight' so I say it fits right in!

12. art I came across this painting of Brooklyn Bridge shortly after arriving back from my hols in America last year, now it hangs on the wall in my living room. Not only is it a fantastic print on canvas, but every time I look at it I get a warm glow inside and remember the night me and G shared a bottle or two of wine with our dinner on Pier 17, and then sat and looked across to the bridge as the sun went down and the city began to sparkle in lights.

13. shoes

Shoes - what more can I say. These are a few of mine. I tried to be artistic with them, first arranging them in a circle with all the toes to the centre and then in a heap, this is what I settled for!

14. Friday
15. alley

16. 7pm
Now, I did take a picture for this, I sat with my camera mounted on its tripod because of the low light levels, and had my TV on the Sky Programme selection page at 7pm, waiting for the clock in the top of the screen to flick over to 7pm also!!! Neat huh!! Not so neat when you have left your memory card in the slot of the computer and I actually photographed nothing!!!

17. telephone

18. ant's eye view A fun picture I took at Langdon Cliffs, some pictures of which I have posted in a previous entry. Cliffs around the coast of England are reknowned in history for smugglers and when I took the photograph it was meant to symbolise someone peering over the edge to see if the coast was clear.

19. words Taken from my latest photography magazine.

20. odd

Can you guess what it is yet? (Sorry, that was my Rolf Harris impression). I took this for my first assignment at college that was all about patterns and textures, and whilst the picture itself may not be that 'odd' it was an odd thing to photograph. It's the drum inside my washing machine.

21. a stop sign

22. traditional

A Scarecrow. The photograph was taken earlier this year, or was it last year, anyway I was asked to judge an annual scarecrow competition held at Wimpole Hall, a National Trust property, and this is one of many great entrants.

23. the sea

A trip to the seafront at Folkestone. The reason, for me, was to enable me to show the difference between fast and slow shutter speeds for my college course. These lads happened by as I was nearing the end of my shoot, made me laugh so much it was hard to shoot anything

24. stripes Also taken on my afternoon/evening out last Sunday with the footy team... don't ask, just don't!!

25. tangled

After washing, before drying, my hair is always pretty tangled.

26. a night shot

Speaks for itself.

I hope you enjoyed some of the pictures, and now zip over to Miss U's and take a look at hers.

*side note to Miss U, your Thursday photo that you took on a Friday!!! I had Friday in my list anyway, so I reckon you get let off with that one!!

Loved your list, some cool ideas, I can see we are going to have to up the anti on the next list!